中部 (zhōng bù) — central part, middle section | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

central partmiddle section

Examples

中部。
Zhè ge guó jiā de zhōng bù jīng jì fā zhǎn hěn kuài.
The economy of the central part of this country is developing rapidly.
中部。
Gōng sī de zǒng bù wèi yú chéng shì de zhōng bù.
The company's headquarters is located in the middle of the city.
中部。
zhōng bù Dì qū de qì hòu bǐ jiào wēn hé.
The climate in the central region is relatively mild.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

中zhōngmiddle

“中” (middle) marks the “部” (part) as central.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The original picture showed a flagpole with a drum in the middle, set up in the center of a field.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

咅

咅pǒu部bù

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

部 pairs 咅, which gives the sound, with 邑. It originally named a place in today's Gansu.

Appears in

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